Aislin of Arianrhod (Land of Alainnshire) (5 page)

Aislin’s eyes grew round. She’d forgotten about the hidden river.

“Yes, Milady! We can take the hidden staircase... down to the river...and there’s a chamber about a half mile out, carved out of the rock... for just such a purpose as hiding from the enemy. If he can’t find Aislin, perhaps he will just leave,” Devin said.

Aislin was instantly angry. Jariath
surely
wasn’t this reckless! “I’m going out there. Maybe I can talk some sense into him.”

Roderic stepped in front of her and caught her wrist in his hand as she reached for the bar across the door. “He’ll haul you up onto his horse and take you back to Morrigan without a second thought. We’ll never get you back if he does that. Devin and your mother are right. We have to leave. We’re too large to travel as a group. You, your mother, Devin, Gwen and little Maeve will stay in the chamber. I’ll go back to your uncle in Wyndham and tell them what has happened. He’ll send his army here to take care of this. I can’t think of any other way.”

They really didn’t have many choices. Aislin grimly nodded in agreement.

There were soldiers in the manor house now; Aislin could hear them coming up the stairs. They were running out of time.

Emara stepped to the far end of the sewing room, and began pushing around the edges of the stones in the corner. “Help me! It’s here somewhere.” Everyone began to push on the stones, until Maeve gave a push and the stone door pivoted open to reveal a hidden, spiral staircase leading down into the shadows.

Jariath’s army was just outside the door. Thunderous crashing and roaring vibrated the walls of the room, and Maeve covered her ears with her hands. Aislin eyed the banded oak door. It wouldn’t hold for long once the men began to assault it with their axes.

“Quickly, everyone down the stairs...hurry!” Emara pushed Gwen and Maeve ahead of her. “Come...!” She motioned for them to follow, and then disappeared into the darkness.

The axes of the invading army were now chewing at the wooden door, and it began to splinter and break. Heart hammering in her chest, Aislin turned back to Devin.

“Devin, can you walk? We have to get to the stairs!” Aislin and Roderic hoisted Devin to his feet.

Devin’s knees buckled back down to the hard floor. “Leave me. I can’t...”

“No! I’m not leaving you behind,” Aislin said. Devin was an enormous man, but she and Roderic managed to get him to his feet and drag him the rest of the way.

Aislin’s eyes widened as an axe crashed through the door, the curved blade hanging ominously in the middle of a large split. The blade quivered as someone yanked on it from the other side. The axe finally let loose with a squeaking protest of metal against wood, pulling a huge chunk of the door along with it. A dirty, bloody hand reached through the fracture, searching for the bar across the door.

Easing Devin to the ground at the top of the steps, Aislin turned and deftly pivoted the stone door back into place.

Effectively hidden, they still had to remain silent. Aislin quickly pulled one of the lanterns down from the wall and lit the candle with the fire flint attached to it. Helping Devin back to his feet, they continued on, Aislin holding the lantern out ahead of her.

The stairs spiraled down in a tight curve, and the narrow passageway required them all to turn sideways to descend. Even with the lantern, it was hard to see, and Aislin took small, tentative steps so she wouldn’t slip on the slick, mossy stairs. She could hear the river in the distance echoing off the stones.

After what seemed like an eternity, they made it to the bottom of the stairs. The damp and musty passageway opened up onto a rock landing approximately eight feet wide along the hidden river. Three wooden boats, all elaborately carved to look like dragons, were bobbing in the river along the landing, tethered by chain to iron rings driven into the rock.

Not many knew about Arianrhod’s hidden river. It was kept secret to give its rulers an advantage in escaping an enemy. No one had ever discovered the origins of the underground river, but it rushed up from a sinkhole into a small cave approximately two miles north of the village proper. The river continued on beneath the village and for several miles off to the south. It then emerged, rushing up and out into daylight from a rather large fissure in a stone cliff in a desolate area known as Stoney End, on the southern boundary of Arianrhod.

Dropping the lantern over a hook on the dragon’s tail, Aislin helped Devin into the boat. Gwen and Emara climbed in as Roderic held it steady. Roderic hooked his lantern in a notch on the dragon’s nose, then lowered Maeve into Gwen’s arms. Turning around, he extended a hand to Aislin and said, “We must make haste.”

Taking his hand, Aislin gingerly stepped into the boat. Roderic jumped in after her and picked up one of the boat’s paddles. Grabbing the other paddle, Aislin slipped the chain from the iron ring and pushed off from shore. The boat bobbed backward into the stronger current in the center of the river.

It had been years since Aislin had piloted these boats, and she looked up with uncertainty at Roderic. Roderic assured her, “You haven’t forgotten.” He put his paddle in the water on his side, and she did likewise on her side.

The boat picked up speed, and as it did, Aislin began to work the paddle in tandem with Roderic to guide them to safety. A sinking feeling overtook her
.
She wondered if they would ever be able to go home again.

On the southernmost edge of the kingdom of Arianrhod, near where the hidden river flowed gently into the dark forest of Blackthorne, stood a dark figure. A hooded cloak covered his head, concealing his face. Standing patiently beside him was a strong black stallion. As the dark figure contemplated the smoke rising from the direction of the village in Arianrhod, a thousand scattered thoughts whirled through his mind.

My spies were right. Jariath has raised an army with the intention of taking the lands of Arianrhod. They have no defenses, save a ragtag militia. The sister of the dead king rules as regent for her young nephew. There is no way they can survive an onslaught from an army like that.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly
.

But what does this mean for us? We have stayed hidden all these years, but I must protect my people. Jariath is a monster, and if he finds out that we’re here, we’ll be next. Of that, I am certain.

He stood silently for a few more minutes, and then swung himself gracefully up onto the horse.

I have some time to prepare. We are not without men...and women...who will fight, and we fight in the forest better than any army in this land. I swear I’ll kill anyone who is unfortunate enough to come near us. I’ll protect and defend what is ours. To the death if need be.

And with that, he swung the horse around and galloped back into the darkness of the forest.

Chapter Five

B
ROCK STOOD ALONE IN THE empty sewing room, trying to collect his thoughts. The battle still raged off in the distance, but here, all was quiet.

They were here. I know they were. How could they have escaped from this room?

Jariath was going to be furious with him, and he tried to fight the panic he was starting to feel. There was simply no way Aislin and her family could have gotten out of here without someone seeing them.

He checked the windows once again, but they were three stories up, and he knew he would see nothing. Turning around, he studied the room, but it gave him no clues. There were simply no visible ways to escape.

And yet... the family had clearly been here and left in haste. Sewing littered the floor, and a small painting of a young boy stood propped against the wall. There were large splotches of bright red blood near the door and the chairs, but no trail that gave him any clues.

How? How had they escaped?

To make matters worse, Aislin had been seen outside, down on the walkway in front of the house. She should have been an easy capture for the swamp rangers Jariath had hired. That blasted Devin had gotten to her first, carrying her to safety in the house. Brock had already decided
that
part of today’s battle was going to be his little secret.

Jariath is going to kill me
. He tried to think of something he could say to ease Jariath’s anger when he found out Aislin had slipped his grasp, but his mind was blank.

Jariath appeared in the ruined doorway. “You have them? Where are they?”

Brock turned to face the prince and felt his courage falter.

“I asked you a question. You
do
have Aislin and her family?”

“Alas, Jariath, I don’t. We had them cornered in this room, and yet... when the men broke through, they were not here. They were just...gone.” Brock waved his hand around the empty room for emphasis.

With a roar of anger that sent chills down Brock’s spine, Jariath kicked the splintered door and broke it cleanly in half. He turned to Brock, his hands curled into fists the size of small boulders.

“What do you mean they’re not here? Didn’t I tell you that capturing them was vital?”

“I know... they were in this room... I
know
they were! Look at the sewing they left behind on the floor! There’s no way they could have gotten out and not been seen by
someone
...” Brock’s voice trailed off weakly.

Crossing the room in two long strides, Jariath grabbed Brock by the front of his tunic and pulled him face to face. “You’re a worthless, miserable worm! I give you
one
job to do... a job that should have been easy...and
you fail me
!” Jariath stood breathing heavily, his blue eyes ablaze with rage. Sure he was about to be killed, Brock closed his eyes.

Jariath flung Brock to the floor and stalked away. “Bah! Send a fool to do a man’s errand, and this is what you get!”

Brock didn’t look up or attempt to stand. Several minutes of silence passed. He knew Jariath was studying the room, trying to see the unseen.

“It’s true. There does not appear to be a way out of this room,” Jariath finally said in a calmer tone. “The stones in the wall are all aligned and mortared. We’re three stories up, so it wouldn’t have been easy for them to lower themselves out the windows. I see no other doors. You’re sure they were here?”

“Yes, I’m sure...”

Jariath interrupted him. “
How
are you sure? Who gave you this information?”

“The kitchen staff after we had...
persuaded...
a few of them to talk. A courier had come from Wyndham, the family had taken a meal in the dining hall, and they had all retired to the sewing room to visit. There were five of them here, and we were on our way up to take them prisoner. Devin got here first and locked them in. It took the axes of half a dozen men to break through the door, and when we did... there was no one...
no one
...in this room.” Brock shook his head in disbelief. “I just don’t understand it.”

“Whose blood is this?” Jariath had stopped near the chairs, peering back sharply at his assistant.

“If I had to guess, I’d say Devin’s. He’d been wounded several times by the time he got in the house. I don’t understand how three women, a little girl and an old man could have gotten that beast out of this room with them. He spilled a lot of blood, yet there’s no trail anywhere. Just the puddles here.”

Jariath gave a growl, and began to pace. “There’s something here...something hidden. That little bitch will
not
get the best of me. There must be some way out of this room, and I’m going to find it.”

Brock stood up, dusted himself off, and recovered a bit of his courage. “And by that time, Aislin will be out of Arianrhod. She’s not stupid. She’s probably on her way to her uncle in Wyndham. We don’t have that kind of time.”

“Don’t you think I know that? I will have a tenuous hold on this land at best if she escapes me. I can’t let that happen.
You
were supposed to see that it
didn’t
happen.” Jariath shook his head. “She will not get through my guard. I’ve ordered my men to the borders of the kingdom. A group that large will not be able to travel very far unnoticed.” His eyes scanned the walls of the room. “She will yet be mine.”

“I hope so. You sound very sure of yourself. If she makes it to Wyndham and returns here with her uncle’s army, it could be a disaster for us,” Brock said.

“Maybe you should have thought of
that
before we invaded. This was
your
idea, worm.”

Jariath disappeared down the stairs, muttering in fury and frustration at the loss of his prey.

Chapter Six

T
HE CAVERN ALONG THE RIVER was exactly as Aislin remembered it growing up. The spring still bubbled out from the rocks in the corner, forming a small pool of fresh water for drinking and bathing. Several cots of rough burlap filled with straw were along one wall, and a pile of blankets sat next to them. Preserved fruits and meats were stored in barrels in a much colder alcove off the back wall by the spring. Although it was certainly not the accommodations they were used to, the cave was meant to be a secure, short-term hiding place from an enemy. As she eased Devin down onto one of the cots, Aislin felt a sense of guarded relief. Hopefully, it would keep them safe and hidden until she and Roderic could return with help.

Emara looked around the cave and wrinkled her nose in disgust. “We’re expected to stay here in this filth?”

“It’s a cave, Mother. Not a palace.”

“I know, but... it’s dark and damp. And cold. We’ll catch our deaths down here.”

Aislin lit the candles in several lanterns. Exasperated, she handed one to her mother. “I don’t know what to tell you, Mother. We certainly can’t go back to the manor house, unless you think you can charm Jariath into withdrawing his troops back to Morrigan.”

The glow of the candles fell on mother and daughter as they glared at each other.

“There’s no need to take that tone with me, Aislin. I’m well aware of the unfortunate position we’re in,” Emara said. “We’ll just have to make the best of it, I suppose.”